The blog contains articles by the author which appear in various newspapers in Kashmir and are also available on the website: www.kashmirfirst.com

Thursday, June 28, 2018

Corruption in blood stream!

(The Kashmir Society has
become so corrupt that one feels the corruption has gone into the blood stream
of the people!)

There was a time when
word “corruption” would give a scary feeling. In fact, calling somebody corrupt
was probably the worst abuse. Not now! It has become a word of daily usage to
which all of us seem to have become insensitive. Corruption has spread like cancer
in the entire society. No part of our daily life is free of this most terrible
malaise. People are feeling suffocated and helpless before this scourge which
has eaten into the vitals of our society. Some years back, Kashmir had been
rated by Transparency International as the second most corrupt state in India.
Corruption is not confined to material areas only but has affected both the
political values and the overall morality of the society. We are faced with
material, moral and political corruption. In reality, the corruption has
virtually gone into our blood stream!

Why has Kashmir
become such a corrupt place? There is one main factor and that is the readiness
of Kashmiris to compromise. Once a person strays from the truth and is prepared
to say that 2 and 2 make 5, corruption starts. The origin of this compromise
goes back centuries in our history. However, it has seen real culmination in
last half century or so. It has been often observed by a number of historians
that the timidity and deceitfulness of a Kashmiri is due to his unending
suppression by outsiders. He has never had a chance to grow in a totally free
and healthy atmosphere. It is natural for a human being to develop an instinct
of survival when he is faced with the forces bent upon annihilating him. For
survival a person goes to any extent. For him morality, truthfulness, honesty,
self-respect, and dignity lose all meaning. He has somehow to survive against
all odds. Sir Walter Lawrence in “Valley of Kashmir” also talks about this misfortune
of Kashmiris. According to him Kashmiris are not as bad as are portrayed by
outsiders. The main cause for their pitiable situation is the centuries of
slavery. A couple of generations living in a free atmosphere under an honest,
just and a strong rule will bring the best out of a Kashmiri. But they never
got that chance and the slavery has continued in one or the other form.
Compromise has become part of our daily life. This has been taught to us by our
leaders.

If one studies the
history of Kashmir’s Movement for emancipation which started in 1931, a stark
fact that emerges is the compromise by the so called leaders at every step! The
leaders at that time had started the movement for total emancipation. It was to
restore the independence and sovereignty which Kashmiris had lost four
centuries back. Primarily movement was started by Muslims but subsequently it
encompassed the entire population regardless of religion.The move had apparently been good as it had
given a truly nationalist colour to Kashmir’s Freedom Movement. In 1946, a
movement was started against the autocratic ruler asking him to quit Kashmir.
However, in 1947 that movement was abandoned and the ruler’s accession to India
was publicly endorsed. People had blind faith in the sincerity of the leader
and followed him in spite of his political somersaults. Had he been truly
nationalist and taken the third option of independence right from the start,
the things would have been different. He did realise his mistake after sometime
but then it was too late. People would have forgiven him but his own lieutenant
stabbed him in the back. He opened the flood gates to corruption. A systematic
campaign for character assassination was unleashed on Kashmiris. Money and
muscle power were freely used to buy temporary loyalty of the masses. Spiritual
and intellectual pursuits were replaced by material gains. Betrayal was
rewarded and loyalty to principles was punished. Orwellian new speak was
introduced and truth was banished. People were “disciplined” through the newly
constituted “Peace Brigade”. It was Goebbels in action. A masterly use of
carrot and stick! That in fact, has been the real beginning of corruption in
Kashmir. Corruption was so much ingrained into the psyche of Kashmir that it
was taken to be a normal way of life. Since that time, the slide into
corruption has been fully accelerated.

There does not appear
any chance of coming out of the pit! Repeated declarations, slogans, and
promises by top politicians to remove the scourge of corruption sound hollow in
the face of actual ground situation. Right from the traffic constable on the
road side up to the top political bosses, the whole system is steeped in
corruption. Bribes are not only gladly taken but also given without any
hesitation or remorse. It has become a well-established routine for getting
anything done in every government establishment or organisation. In some
departments, the corruption has been institutionalised and it is taken to be
part of the normal procedure. No one feels anything bad about it. Rather it is
taken to be rightful cut of all concerned. The typical example is of
engineering departments. The percentage cut from each contract right from the
level of a junior engineer to chief engineer is fixed. There is no dispute
about it. Paying of huge bribes through intermediaries for posting, transfer,
and appointments at the administrative level as well as the ministerial level
has been thoroughly debated but no cure found!

Apart from material corruption, there is
exponentially growing moral corruption involving all sections of the society.
Every second day one witnesses skeletons falling out of the moral cupboard. The
second rank in corruption given to the state by the transparency international
must be now higher than even the first rank? Can this corruption which has
eaten into the vitals of Kashmir society be ever eradicated? The blood will
have to be drained out and purified by a dialysis machine. Even then it can
only be prevented from recurring if the top is clean. Honesty like water flows
from top downwards. Unless we have the top honest and clean and that too with a
political will, nothing will succeed. An honest top rung will not tolerate a
corrupt bottom. In the present context an uncompromising, honest, and upright
leader with courage of conviction and a political will to stand by the truth is
the only solution to end the vicious circle of corruption. To refuse compromise
involves sacrifice and suffering. Is anyone prepared for that? This is
precisely what Kashmir has been waiting for. Will we ever get such a leader?
God alone knows! Till the time that happens, the corruption is not going to go
away. It will rather go on multiplying and eating into the vitals of our
society.